WSDOT News - Hitting the road for Labor Day? Plan ahead!

Labor Day weekend is the last big weekend of summer travel, so planning ahead and being prepared for occasional congestion is crucial to a successful end-of-summer excursion.

We’ve gathered all of our best travel tools in one place to help you plan the best times to hit the road and to stay up-to-date throughout your trip!

Events this weekend:

Friday, Aug. 31:

Bumbershoot: All day at Seattle Center

Pax West: 10 a.m. – Midnight at Washington State Convention Center

Zac Brown Band: 7 p.m. at Safeco Field

Saturday, Sept. 1:

Bumbershoot: All day at Seattle Center

Pax West: 10 a.m. – Midnight at Washington State Convention Center

Sounders vs. Sporting KC: 1 p.m. at CenturyLink Field

Rod Stewart & Cyndi Lauper: 7:30 p.m. at White River Amphitheater

Foo Fighters: 8 p.m. at Safeco Field

Sunday, Sept. 2:

Bumbershoot: All day at Seattle Center

Pax West: 10 a.m. – Midnight at Washington State Convention Center

Monday, Sept. 3 (Labor Day):

Bumbershoot: All day at Seattle Center

Pax West: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. at Washington State Convention Center

Back to school safety

We, along with our partners in law enforcement, want to help all kids safely get to and from school each day. Washington State Patrol wrote this blog, and included a video with some great refreshers on when to stop for school buses. Remember to slow down in school zones and pay close attention for kids using the crosswalks too!

Traffic volume or crash data question?

As we finish up projects or get ready to start new ones, I’ll often get questions about traffic volumes and crash data. This information is all available through our Crash Data Portal. It allows you to search for crashes involving distracted drivers, certain types of vehicles and more! For you visual people, it isn’t just a chart of numbers – you can see the data in map and graph form, too!

Volunteers needed for our annual bicycle and pedestrian count

Each year we’ve seen an increase in the number of people who use a form of active transportation (walk, bike, scoot, etc.) during their daily commutes and each year, with your help, we track the changes in those volumes. Last year, volunteers counted 63,500 people, a four percent increase over 2016. If you’re interested in helping with this annual tally – check out this blog with all the details on when it’s happening and how to sign up.